Russian Federation harms the security of a number of African states and uses their citizens as mercenaries in the war against Ukraine - MFA

Russian Federation harms the security of a number of African states and uses their citizens as mercenaries in the war against Ukraine - MFA

Kyiv  •  UNN

October 8 2024, 05:42 PM  •  8086 views

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine expressed concern about Russia's activities in Africa through the African Corps. It condemned Russia's use of African and Arab citizens as mercenaries in the war against Ukraine.

Ukraine expresses its serious concern about the ongoing illegal activities of the Russian Federation aimed at expanding its sphere of influence with the use of the so-called "African Corps" of the Russian Federation and its affiliated terrorist Russian private military companies on the sovereign territory of a number of African states. This is stated in the statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Russia's destabilizing activities in a number of African countries, UNN reports.

The diplomatic mission emphasized that Russian mercenaries are causing irreparable damage to the stability and security of African countries, fueling internal contradictions and conflicts, causing an increase in human losses, and are engaged in illegal mining and expropriation of valuable mineral resources of these countries to finance Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine.

"We state that people from Africa and the Middle East, who are being fraudulently or coercively sent by Russia to fight against the Ukrainian people, are regularly taken prisoner by Ukraine.

We call on such foreigners to avoid joining the Russian army by all means, and if they are sent to the front, to use the "I Want to Live" project at the earliest opportunity, to voluntarily surrender their weapons to the Ukrainian Defense Forces and save their lives," the statement reads.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemned the cynical use by the Russian Federation of citizens of African and Arab countries as mercenaries, who are mercilessly used by the Kremlin regime as "cannon fodder" in battles against the Ukrainian Defense Forces on the territory of our country.

"We call on the governments of friendly countries in Africa and the Middle East to publicly condemn such actions by Russia and take all possible measures to stop this criminal practice.

According to the universally recognized norms and principles of international law and the UN Charter, Ukraine is a victim of illegal, unprovoked and unjustified armed aggression by the Russian Federation. Therefore, it is the international duty of all states that respect the Principles and Purposes of the UN Charter to help protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders. It is only through unity and strength that the world is able to repel aggressors and occupiers, wherever they are," the Foreign Ministry summarized.

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